Jason Lee – The Best of Lounge Organ 2 (Review)

Organ and Keyboard Cavalcade Review by Ian King

This is the third CD from organist Jason Lee, who many of you may have seen on t’internet under the pseudonym of ‘organaut’ on YouTube. He currently has around sixty videos playing various organs and keyboards including the setup used on this second volume of his “Best Of Lounge Organ” series.

Volume one was released last year, with an easy listening Tyros 5 CD sandwiched in between. This one follows the same pattern of classic songs given the drawbar treatment. Unlike Dirk’s CD, this one is packed full of pop standards you will instantly recognise (no Google searches needed!)

This ‘Hammond sound’ is produced on his KeyB & Nord C2D organs (the Nord being added since volume one). There is also a Roland BK-7m module to handle the backings of drums, the odd strumming guitar and occasional lead instrument. The result is an excellent re-creation and if you love that sound then I think you will like this selection of tunes and the overall sound.

Highlights include, “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You,” “Leaving on a Jet Plane,” a lovely solo-organ version of “A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square,” a rocky and distorted version of “Black Magic Woman,” “Fly Me to the Moon,” “Early Autumn,” “Girl Talk / Blue Moon” and “It’s Impossible”.

FULL TRACKS: Can’t Take My Eyes Off You • Leaving on a Jet Plane • A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square / Once in a While • Tie a Yellow Ribbon / Oh Lonesome Me / Snowbird • Fly Me to the Moon • Early Autumn • Delilah • Take Five • I’m a Believer • Girl Talk / Blue Moon • Caravan • I’ll Never Find Another You / Mr. Tambourine Man • It’s Impossible • You Light Up My Life • Black Magic Woman • For All We Know / There’s a Kind of Hush.

Ian King - MSS Studios

MSS Studios started selling organ recordings and books in 1996. In 2005 we took over the organ ‘arm’ of Audicord, who had previously taken over Amberlee Records. In 2011, I started to review CDs & DVDs for Organ & Keyboard Cavalcade Magazine.